Three child sex abuse victims who belong to a support group called the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP), including a Missouri man who is the organization’s long time executive director

WHY

In two recent blog postings (one weeks ago, another in August), SNAP says that NY Cardinal Timothy Dolan has “callously attacked” clergy sex abuse victims, including a New York teenager.

In one, he essentially impugns the credibility of a 16 year old girl who reported last August being molested three times over three days by her pastor/employer. Dolan basically questioned why she returned to work twice after the initial offense. http://blog.archny.org/?p=1556

Both postings, SNAP maintains, further hurt and intimidate victims into staying silent, thus enabling more predators to go undetected and endangering more kids. Both contradict Dolan’s “carefully-crafted but disingenuous image as a prelate who is better than most other bishops regarding child safety,” the group says. SNAP wants Dolan to publicly apologize and take down the posts.

And they want Dolan to use his blog to aggressively seek out others who may have seen the arrested Bronx priest’s crimes and beg them to contact law enforcement.

SNAP is also upset about what victims and their advocates are calling an unprecedented assault by Catholic officials to “intimidate child sex abuse victims, witnesses, whistleblowers and those who help them” by seeking subpoenas and massive amounts of private communications between victims and a support group.

The unusual legal maneuvers were recently detailed in a page one New York Times story. The Times quoted the head of the NY-based Catholic League as suggesting that several bishops have decided to “come together collectively” to “better toughen up” and go after victims.

In St. Louis, archdiocesan lawyers are demanding that SNAP turn over perhaps hundreds of pages of the group’s confidential records, including emails to and from a now 19 year old who was repeatedly raped nine years ago by a priest. And in Kansas City, church lawyers and demanding private communications going back 23 years, even from now-deceased individuals who never set foot in KC and who had no knowledge of or role in clergy sex cases there.

The demands, SNAP says, are “invasive, chilling, and designed to discourage victims, witnesses, whistleblowers, police, prosecutors and journalists” from contacting the group for help. They are also costing SNAP tens of thousands of dollars and “causing severe financial hardship” to the group. So SNAP wants Dolan (as head of the US Conference of Bishops) to publicly denounce the bishops who are using this “mean-spirited” legal tactic, and try to stop them from doing it.

The 16-year-old NY girl reported being molested three times over three days at Our Blessed Lady Catholic Church in the Bronx where she worked by Fr. James (aka Jaime) Duenas. The cleric reportedly told prosecutors that she “was wearing short skirts” and “enjoyed” what he called “massages.” Police arrested him but SNAP is not clear on the status of the case. The group wants Dolan to seek out others with knowledge or suspicions of Duenas’ crimes and urge them to get help, call police, and help prosecutors convict him so he’ll be away from kids.